Fourth Year

English 408 GMAT Verbal Review

What is GMAT? The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) is a standardized, four-part test delivered in English.

About GMAT
GMAT is designed to help admissions officers evaluate how suitable individual applicants are for their graduate business and management programs. It measures basic verbal, mathematical, and analytical writing skills that a test taker has developed over a long period of time through education and work.

Why Take the GMAT Test?

GMAT scores are used by admissions officers in roughly 1,800 graduate business and management programs worldwide. Your scores will give you a good indication of how well prepared you are to succeed academically in a graduate management program; how well you do on the test may also help you choose the business schools to which you apply.

Format and timing

1. 2. 3. 4. The GMAT exam consists of four main parts: the quantitative section, the verbal section, the integrated reasoning section, and the analytical writing assessment.

Total testing time is three and a half hours, but test takers should plan for a total time of approximately four hours, with breaks. The quantitative and verbal sections of the GMAT exam are multiple-choice, adjusting to a test takers level.

How GMAT is Administered

At the start of each multiple-choice section of the exam, test takers are presented with a question of medium difficulty. As they answer each question, the computer scores their answer and uses itas well as their responses to any preceding questionsto determine which question to present next.

How GMAT is Administered

Correct responses typically prompt questions of increased difficulty. Incorrect responses generally result in questions of lesser difficulty. This process continues until test takers complete the section, at which point the computer will have an accurate assessment of their ability level in that subject area.

Verbal section
The Verbal section uses multiple-choice questions to

measure your ability to read and comprehend written materialto reason and evaluate arguments and to correct written material to conform to standard written English. You will have 75 minutes to answer 41 questions The question types are reading comprehension, critical reasoning, and sentence correction questions.

Sentence Correction
Sentence Correction questions ask which of the five choices best expresses an idea or relationship. The questions require familiarity with the stylistic conventions and grammatical rules of standard written English. This section measures the following abilities: Correct expression Effective expression

Reading Comprehension
Reading comprehension passages are up to 350 words long. Topics contain material from the social sciences, physical or biological sciences, and business-related areas (marketing, economics, human resource management, etc.). Reading comprehension passages are accompanied by interpretive, applied, and inferential questions. This section measures the following abilities:

Reading Comprehension
1. Understanding words and statements in reading passages; 2. Understanding the logical relationships between significant points and concepts in the reading passages; 3. Drawing inferences from facts and statements in the reading passages;

Critical Reasoning
Critical reasoning questions are designed to test the reasoning skills involved in making arguments, evaluating arguments, and formulating or evaluating a plan of action. Questions are based on materials from a variety of sources. This section measures the following abilities: Argument construction Argument evaluation Formulating and evaluating a plan of action

GMAT Verbal Review

5.0 Sentence Correction

Sentence correction questions

1. Sentence correction questions present a statement in which words are underlined 2. The questions ask you to select from the answer options the best expression of the idea or relationship described in the underlined section 3. The first answer choice always repeats the original phrasingWhereas the other four provide alternatives

EXAMPLE
Choose the answer that produces the most effective sentence; this answer should be clear and exact, without awkwardness, ambiguity, redundancy, or grammatical error.

Some bat caveslike honeybee hiveshave residents that take on different duties such as defending the entranceacting as sentinels and to sound a warning at the approach of danger, and scouting outside the cave for new food and roosting sites (A) acting as sentinels and to sound (B) acting as sentinels and sounding (C) to act as sentinels and sound (D) to act as sentinels and to sound (E) to act as a sentinel sounding

Basic English Grammar Rules

Sentence correction questions ask you to recognize and potentially correct at least one of the following grammar rulesHowever, these rules are not exhaustive

Agreement
Standard English requires elements within a sentence to be consistentThere are two types of agreementnoun-verb and pronoun Noun-verb agreement"Singular subjects take singular verbswhereas plural subjects take plural verbs Pronoun agreement"A pronoun must agree with the noun or pronoun it refers to in person number, and gender

Noun-Verb Agreement
Examples Correcthe walks to the storeIncorrecthe walk to the store CorrectWe go to schoolIncorrectWe goes to schoo1 CorrectThe number of residents has grownIncorrect The number of residents have grown CorrectThe masses have spokenIncorrectThe masses has spoken

Pronoun agreement
Examples CorrectWhen you dreamyou are usually asleep IncorrectWhen one dreamsyou are usually asleep CorrectWhen the kids went to sleepthey slept like logs IncorrectWhen the kids went to sleephe slept like a log

Diction
Words should be chosen to correctly and effectively reflect the appropriate part of speech There are several words that are commonly used incorrectly When answering sentence correction questionspay attention to the following conventions: Amongbetween.

Between/Among
Examples: CorrectWe divided our winnings among the three of usIncorrectWe divided our winnings between the three of us CorrectShe and I divided the cake between USIncorrectShe and I divided the cake among us

Aslike
As can be a preposition meaning in the capacity of, but more often is a conjunction of manner and is followed by a verb Like is generally used as a preposition, is followed by a noun, an object pronoun, or a verb ending in ing.

As/Like
Examples CorrectI work as a librarianIncorrectI work like a librarian CorrectDo as I say, not as I doIncorrectDo like I say, not like I do CorrectIt felt like a dreamIncorrectIt felt as a dream CorrectPeople like you inspire meIncorrect People as you inspire me CorrectThere's nothing like biking on a warmautumn dayIncorrectTheres nothing as biking on a warm fall day

Countable and Uncountable nouns

Mass and count words: Mass words are nouns quantified by an amount rather than by a number Count nouns can be quantified by a number CorrectWe bought a loaf of breadIncorrectWe bought one bread CorrectWe passed many buildingsIncorrectWe passed much buildings

Grammatical Construction
Good grammar requires complete sentences; Be on the lookout for improperly formed constructions; 1- Fragments"Parts of a sentence that are disconnected from the main clause are called fragments CorrectWe saw the doctor and his nurse at the partyIncorrectWe saw the doctor at the partyAnd his nurse

2- Run-on sentences"A run-on sentence is two independent clauses that run together without proper punctuation CorrectJose Canseco is still a feared batter, most pitchers don't want to face him Incorrect"Jose Canseco is still a feared batter most pitchers don't want to face him

Constructions"Avoid wordiness & redundancy

CorrectWe could not come to the meeting because of a conflictIncorrectThe reason we could not come to the meeting is because of a conflict

Idiom

Avoid nonstandard expressions Be careful to use the correct idiom when using the constructions and parts of speech CorrectThey ranged in age from 10 to 15IncorrectThey ranged in age from 10 up to 15

Correlatives
Word combinations such as not onlybut also should be followed by an element of the same grammatical type Example: CorrectI have called not only to thank her but also to tell her about the next meeting IncorrectI have called not only to thank her but also I told her about the next meeting

Forms of comparison
"Many forms follow precise constructions Fewer refers to a specific number, whereas less than refers to a continuous quantity Betweenand is the correct form to designate a choice Farther refers to distancewhereas further refers to degree

Example CorrectThere were fewer children in my class this yearIncorrectThere were less children in my class this year CorrectThere was less devastation than I was toldIncorrectThere was fewer devastation than I was told

Examples
CorrectWe had to choose between chocolate and vanillaIncorrectWe had to choose between chocolate or vanilla(It is also correct to say,We had to choose chocolate or vanilla) CorrectI ran farther than Johnbut he took his weight training further than I didIncorrectI ran further than Johnbut he took his weight training farther than I did

Logical Predication
Watch out for phrases that detract from the logical argument Modification problemsModifiers should be positioned so it is clear what word or words they are meant to modify If modifiers are not positioned clearly, they can cause illogical references or comparisonsor distort the meaning of the statement

Example
Examples: CorrectI put the cake that I baked by the door IncorrectI put the cake by the door that I baked CorrectReading my mindshe gave me the delicious cookieIncorrectReading my mindthe cookie she gave me was delicious CorrectInthe Middle Agesthe world was believed to be flatIncorrectIn the Middle Agesthe world was flat

Parallelism
Constructing a sentence that is parallel in structure depends on making sure that the different elements in the sentence balance each other To make sure that a sentence is grammatically correct check to see that phrasesclausesverbsand other sentence elements parallel each other

CorrectI took a bathwent to sleepand woke up refreshedIncorrectI took a bath sleepingand waking up refreshed

Rhetorical Construction
Good sentence structure avoids constructions that are awkwardwordy, redundantimpreciseor unclear, even when they are free of grammatical errors Example CorrectBefore we left on vacationwe watered the plantschecked to see that the stove was off, and set the burglar alarm IncorrectBefore we left to go on our vacationwe wateredchecked to be sure that the stove had been turned off, and set it

Verb Form
make sure that verbs are used in the correct tense Be alert to whether a verb should reflect pastpresent or future tense Example CorrectI went to school yesterdayI go to school every weekdayI will go to school tomorrow

Each tense has: a perfect form(used with the past participleie walkedran) a progressive form(used with the present participle iewalkingrunning) a perfect progressive form (also used with the present participleie walkingrunning) Present perfectUsed with has or have, the present perfect tense describes an action that occurred at an indefinite time in the past or that began in the past and continues into the present

Examples" CorrectI have traveled all over the world(at an indefinite time) CorrectHe has gone to school since he was five years old(continues into the present)

Past perfectThis verb form is used with had to show the order of two events that took place in the past Example CorrectBy the time I left for schoolthe cake had been baked

Future perfect"Used with will have, this verb form describes an event in the future that will precede another event Example: By the end of the day, I will have studied for all my tests.

Present progressiveUsed with amisor are, this verb form describes an ongoing action that is happening now.

Example: CorrectI am studying for exams""The student is studying for exams""We are studying for exams

Past progressiveUsed with was or were, this verb form describes something that was happening when another action occurred Example CorrectThe student was studying when the fire alarm rangThey were studying when the fire broke out

Future progressiveUsed with will be or shall be, this verb tense describes an ongoing action that will continue into the future Example: CorrectThe students will be studying for exams throughout the month of December

Present perfect progressive: Used with have been or has been, this verb tense describes something that began in the pastcontinues into the presentand may continue into the future Example: CorrectThe student has been studying hard in the hope of acing the test

Past perfect progressiveUsed with had been this verb form describes an action of some duration that was completed before another past action occurred Example CorrectBefore the fire alarm rangthe student had been studying.

Future perfect progressiveUsed with will have beenthis verb form describes a futureongoing action that will occur before a specified time Example CorrectBy the end of next year, the students will have been studying math for five years

Sentence Correction Sample Questions

Sentence correction questions present a sentencepart or all of which is underlinedBeneath the sentences, you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined passageThe first answer choice repeats the originalthe other four are differentIf you think the original phrasing is best, choose the first answer, otherwise choose one of the others.

This type of question tests your ability to recognize the correctness and effectiveness of expression in standard written EnglishIn choosing your answer, follow the requirements of standard written English; that is, pay attention to grammar, choice of words, and sentence construction.

3- However much United States voters may agree that there is waste in government and that the government as a whole spends beyond its meansit is difficult to find broad support for a movement toward a minimal state (A) However much United States voters may agree that (B) Despite the agreement among United States voters to the fact (C) Although United States voters agree (D) Even though United States voters may agree (E) There is agreement among United States voters that

4- The voluminous personal papers of Thomas Alva Edison reveal that his inventions typically sprang to life not in a flash of inspiration but evolved slowly from previous works (A) sprang to life not in a flash of inspiration but evolved slowly (B) sprang to life not in a flash of inspiration but were slowly evolved (C) did not spring to life in a flash of inspiration but evolved slowly (D) did not spring to life in a flash of inspiration but had slowly evolved (E) did not spring to life in a flash of inspiration but they were slowly evolved

6-Labor Department study states that the numbers of women employed outside the home grew by more than a thirty-five percent increase in the past decade and accounted for more than sixty-two percent of the total growth in the civilian work force (A) numbers of women employed outside the home grew by more than a thirtyfive percent increase (B) numbers of women employed outside the home grew more than thirty-five percent (C) numbers of women employed outside the home were raised by more than thirty-five percent (D) number of women employed outside the home increased by more than thirty-five percent (E) number of women employed outside the home was raised by more than a thirty-five percent increase

7-From the earliest days of the tribekinship determined the way in which the Ojibwa society organized its labor, provided access to its resources, and defined rights and obligations involved in the distribution and consumption of those resources (A) and defined rights and obligations involved in the distribution and consumption of those resources (B) defining rights and obligations involved in their distribution and consumption (C) and defined rights and obligations as they were involved in its distribution and consumption (D) whose rights and obligations were defined in their distribution and consumption (E) the distribution and consumption of them defined by rights and obligations

9-Delighted by the reported earnings for the first quarter of the fiscal year, it was decided by the company manager to give her staff a raise (A) it was decided by the company manager to give her staff a raise (B) the decision of the company manager was to give her staff a raise (C) the company manager decided to give her staff a raise (D) the staff was given a raise by the company manager (E) a raise was given to the staff by the company manager